479

under the pretext of friendship, they first demanded oaths, so as not to make them conspicuous, as they were about to reveal the greatest secrets to the young emperor. Then, when they received the pledges and were supposedly confident, they said that the young emperor had made an agreement with the Krales to start a war against the emperor his father-in-law, and that nothing was now lacking for the agreements, and that the Krales was most eager to ally with the young emperor and to show all zeal and eagerness on his behalf, but being clever at stirring up and confusing matters and using opportunities fittingly, he had also devised this, to prepare the emperors to be more irreconcilable, that he wanted to take you as a hostage; and he pretends, supposedly, to distrust the young emperor, 3.203 lest he plot against the army which he will provide in alliance, and destroy it, after resolving his differences with the emperor. For which reasons, pressing the young emperor, he asks to take you. And the emperor, since he decided to start the war and was paying close attention to the alliance of the Triballi, agreed out of necessity to hand you over. It is necessary to consider these things and to find some device, by which both he and the present situation will be saved. They, therefore, having devised so plausible a plot, carried it out, but Asanes, ignorant of the deceit, for he knew that they had previously preferred the cause of the emperor Kantakouzenos, especially because rumors from all sides were reaching him and the young emperor was reported to want to start a war against the emperor his father-in-law, both believed what was said and was violently disturbed, and acknowledging much gratitude to them for their goodwill towards the emperor and himself, he then begged them to suggest a way by which he, turning, would escape the expected evils. They said there was nothing more advantageous than to set sail for Byzantium as quickly as possible, so that by this he would at once escape the danger and inform the emperor about what was being done, so that he, perceiving the danger, would provide swift assistance and not as a side-matter, nor lazily thinking that affairs here stood outside of dangers. And if the young emperor should try to detain him, they would cooperate in the greatest way for his departure, advising and persuading him to do nothing by force, 3.204 nor to oppose his impulse. Such things they persuaded by deceiving, but Asanes, since a trireme happened to have been prepared there, fearing the threats, sailed away to Byzantium and reported to the emperor as much as he had learned from them, and he insisted that the young emperor had turned openly to war. But those who were managing the war, when Asanes departed, having seized great freedom, persuade the young emperor to send an embassy to the Krales. And he received it gladly and promised great things, promising to help with an army and money and all his power against the emperor his father-in-law and to recover the authority that had been taken away, and he did and suggested everything that he thought would keep the war between the emperors irreconcilable, having first made agreements with the emperor, which he thought would be most advantageous to him for his rule. But the emperor Kantakouzenos considered the reports terrible, for he was informed daily in secret by his friends, and thought it necessary to go there and break up the conspiracies against him. But since the Latin war was then at its height, it was not possible either to withdraw or to prepare another force, as the one that had been prepared was necessarily occupied with the war. But when he saw that it was impossible for him to sail to Macedonia, he sent the empress Anna to her son, to persuade him to abstain from these absurdities and to reconcile him to himself, saying 3.205 to her that neither she nor anyone else was ignorant of what evils and misfortunes the civil war had become the cause for the Romans, not only for the ruled, but also for the rulers themselves. When this had been ended after a time, and both public and private affairs were all changing for the better, some envious demon did not allow them to be at peace, but again raising up destructive and slanderous men and no better in character

479

προσχήματι φιλίας πρῶτα μὲν ὅρκους ἀπῄτουν, ὥστε καταδήλους μὴ ποιεῖν, μέλλοντας ἐκκαλύπτειν τὰ μάλιστα ἀπόῤῥητα τῷ νέῳ βασιλεῖ. ἔπειτα, ἐπεὶ ἐλάμβανον τὰς πίστεις καὶ ἦσαν ἐν πεποιθήσει δῆθεν, βασιλέα τὸν νέον ἔλεγον συνθέσθαι Κράλῃ ἐπὶ τῷ πόλεμον κινεῖν κατὰ βασιλέως τοῦ κηδεστοῦ, καὶ οὐδενὸς ἔτι ἐνδεῖν πρὸς τὰς συμβάσεις, Κράλην δὲ προθυμότατα μὲν ἐθέλειν βασιλεῖ τῷ νέῳ συμμαχεῖν καὶ πᾶσαν ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ καὶ σπουδὴν ἐνδείκνυσθαι καὶ προθυμίαν, δεινὸν δὲ ὄντα ταράξαι καὶ συγχέαι πράγματα καὶ χρήσασθαι προσηκόντως τοῖς καιροῖς καὶ τοῦτ' ἐπινενοηκέναι, ἵν' ἀσυμβάτως μᾶλλον ἔχειν παρασκευάσῃ τοὺς βασιλέας, τὸ σὲ βούλεσθαι ὥσπερ ὅμηρον λαβεῖν· καὶ σκήπτεται δῆθεν ἀπιστεῖν τῷ νέῳ βασιλεῖ, 3.203 μὴ τῇ στρατιᾷ ἐπιβουλεύσει, ἣν παρέξει συμμαχήσουσαν, καὶ διαφθερεῖ, τὰς διαφορὰς διαλυσάμενος πρὸς βασιλέα. ὧν ἕνεκα ἐγκείμενος βασιλεῖ τῷ νέῳ σὲ λαβεῖν αἰτεῖ. βασιλεὺς δ' ἐπεὶ ἔγνω τὸν πόλεμον κινεῖν καὶ μάλιστα τῇ Τριβαλῶν προσέχειν συμμαχίᾳ, συνέθετο ἐξ ἀνάγκης ἐκδιδόναι. ἃ σκέπτεσθαι χρεὼν καὶ μηχανήν τινα ἐξευρίσκειν, ἐξ ἧς αὐτός τε καὶ τὰ παρόντα πράγματα διασωθήσεται. ἐκεῖνοι μὲν οὖν οὕτω πιθανὴν συσκευασάμενοι προσῆγον τὴν ἐπιβουλὴν, Ἀσάνης δὲ ἀγνοήσας τὴν ἀπάτην, ᾔδει γὰρ ἐκείνους πρότερον τὰ Καντακουζηνοῦ τοῦ βασιλέως μᾶλλον ᾑρημένους, ἄλλως θ' ὅτι καὶ φῆμαι πάντοθεν προσέπιπτον αὐτῷ καὶ βασιλεὺς ὁ νέος ἐμηνύετο πόλεμον βούλεσθαι κινεῖν πρὸς βασιλέα τὸν κηδεστὴν, ἐπίστευέ τε τοῖς εἰρημένοις καὶ σφοδρῶς ἐθορυβεῖτο, χάριν δὲ πολλὴν ὁμολογῶν αὐτοῖς τῆς εἰς βασιλέα καὶ αὐτὸν εὐνοίας, ἔπειτα ἐδεῖτο καὶ τρόπον ὑποθέσθαι, οἷ τραπόμενος τὰ προσδοκώμενα ἐκφεύξεται κακά. οἱ δ' οὐδὲν ἔφασαν λυσιτελέστερον, ἢ τάχιστα ἀπαίρειν εἰς Βυζάντιον, ὡς ἅμα τε ἐν τούτῳ ἐκφευξόμενον τὸν κίνδυνον καὶ βασιλεῖ δηλώσοντα περὶ τῶν πραττομένων, ἵν' αἰσθόμενος τὸν κίνδυνον ἐκεῖνος, ὀξεῖαν τὴν βοήθειαν ποιοῖτο καὶ μὴ παρέργως, μηδὲ ῥᾳθύμως οἰόμενος κινδύνων ἔξω τὰ τῇδε πράγματα ἑστάναι. ἢν δ' ὁ νέος βασιλεὺς ἐπιχειρῇ κατέχειν, ἀλλ' αὐτοὺς συμπράξειν τὰ μέγιστα πρὸς τὴν ἀποδημίαν, παραινοῦντας αὐτῷ καὶ πείθοντας μηδὲν πρὸς βίαν πράττειν, 3.204 μηδ' ἐνίστασθαι πρὸς τὴν ὁρμήν. τοιαῦτα μὲν ἐκεῖνοι ἔπεισαν ἐξαπατήσαντες, Ἀσάνης δὲ, ἐπεὶ τριήρης παρεσκευασμένη ἔτυχεν ἐκεῖ, δείσας τὰ ἠπειλημένα, ἀπέπλεεν εἰς Βυζάντιον καὶ ἀπήγγειλε βασιλεῖ, ὅσα παρ' ἐκείνων πύθοιτο, ἰσχυρίζετό τε, ὡς βασιλεὺς ὁ νέος πρὸς τὸν πόλεμον ἐκτραπείη φανερῶς. ἐκεῖνοι δὲ οἱ πράττοντες τὸν πόλεμον, ἐπεὶ Ἀσάνης ἀπεχώρει, πολλῆς ἐπιλαβόμενοι ἀδείας, πείθουσι τὸν νέον βασιλέα πρεσβείαν ποιήσασθαι πρὸς Κράλην. ὁ δ' ἐδέχετο ἀσμένως καὶ μεγάλα ἐπηγγέλλετο, καὶ στρατιᾷ ἐπαγγελλόμενος καὶ χρήμασι καὶ πάσῃ δυνάμει βοηθήσειν ἐπὶ βασιλέα τὸν κηδεστὴν καὶ τὴν ἀφῃρημένην ἀνασώσεσθαι ἀρχὴν, ἔπραττέ τε πάντα καὶ ὑπετίθει, ὅσα ᾤετο τὸν πρὸς ἀλλήλους τῶν βασιλέων πόλεμον τηρήσειν ἄλυτον, συμβάσεις πρότερον πρὸς βασιλέα θέμενος, ἃς ἐνόμιζε μάλιστα αὐτῷ πρὸς τὴν ἀρχὴν λυσιτελεῖν. βασιλεὺς δὲ ὁ Καντακουζηνὸς δεινὰ ἐποιεῖτο τὰ ἀπαγγελλόμενα, ἐμηνύετο γὰρ παρὰ τῶν φίλων κρύφα ὁσημέραι, καὶ δεῖν ᾤετο ἐκεῖ παραγενόμενον, διαλύειν τὰς ἐπ' αὐτὸν συστάσεις. τοῦ Λατινικοῦ δὲ τότε ἀκμάζοντος πολέμου, οὔτ' ἀφίστασθαι ἐξῆν, οὔθ' ἑτέραν δύναμιν παρασκευάζειν, ὡς τῆς παρεσκευασμένης ἀναγκαίως πρὸς τὸν πόλεμον κατεχομένης. ἐπεὶ δὲ αὐτὸν ἐπὶ Μακεδονίαν ἀδυνάτως πλέειν ἔχοντα ἑώρα, Ἄνναν τὴν βασιλίδα ἔπεμπε πρὸς τὸν υἱὸν, ὡς πείσουσαν ἀποσχέσθαι τῶν ἀτόπων καὶ διαλλάξουσαν αὐτῷ, οὐκ ἀγνοεῖν φά 3.205 μενος πρὸς ἐκείνην οὔτ' αὐτὴν, οὔθ' ἕτερον οὐδένα, οἵων κακῶν αἴτιος καὶ συμφορῶν ὁ συγγενικὸς κατέστη πόλεμος Ῥωμαίοις, οὐ τοῖς ἀρχομένοις μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῖς ἄρχουσιν αὐτοῖς. οὗ καταλυθέντος διὰ χρόνου, καὶ τῶν τε κοινῶν καὶ ἰδιωτικῶν πραγμάτων πάντων πρὸς τὸ βέλτιον μεταδιδόντων, βάσκανός τις δαίμων ἠρεμεῖν οὐκ εἴασεν, ἀλλ' αὖθις φθόρους ἀνθρώπους καὶ συκοφάντας ἀναστήσας καὶ τρόπων οὐδὲν ἄμεινον